Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Ecological Niches

Ecological Niches

All organisms have a position within an ecosystem. The complete set of living and nonliving factors—including food resources, climate, and terrain—that define the position of a given organism are collectively referred to as the organism’s ecological niche.

Competition

Competition

When organisms require the same limited resources within an environment, they may have to compete for them. Competition is a net-negative interaction. Even if two competing individuals or populations do not interact directly, the overall fitness of both competitors is lowered as a result of not having full access to the limited resource.

Optimal Foraging

Optimal Foraging

How animals obtain and eat their food is called foraging behavior. Foraging can include searching for plants and hunting for prey and depends on the species and environment.

Conservation of Declining Populations

Conservation of Declining Populations

Conservation of declining population focuses on ways of detecting, diagnosing, and halting a population decline. The approach uses methods to prevent populations from going extinct.

Epiphytes, Parasites, and Carnivores

Epiphytes, Parasites, and Carnivores

Plants often form mutualistic relationships with soil-dwelling fungi or bacteria to enhance their roots’ nutrient uptake ability. Root-colonizing fungi (e.g., mycorrhizae) increase a plant’s root surface area, which promotes nutrient absorption. While root-colonizing, nitrogen-fixing bacteria (e.g., rhizobia) convert atmospheric nitrogen (N2) into ammonia (NH3), making nitrogen available to plants for various biological functions. For example, nitrogen is essential for the...

Predator-Prey Interactions

Predator-Prey Interactions

Predators consume prey for energy. Predators that acquire prey and prey that avoid predation both increase their chances of survival and reproduction (i.e., fitness). Routine predator-prey interactions elicit mutual adaptations that improve predator offenses, such as claws, teeth, and speed, as well as prey defenses, including crypsis, aposematism, and mimicry. Thus, predator-prey interactions resemble an evolutionary arms race.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Multi-sensor tracking reveals the extent of nocturnal migration in landbirds.

Current biology : CB·2026

Same author

Europe's bottlenecks to the operationalisation of Essential Biodiversity Variables for Environmental Policy Support.

npj biodiversity·2026

Same author

Offshore wind farm avoidance by a discard-feeding seabird is independent of local fishing activity.

The Journal of animal ecology·2026

Same author

Plastic biovectoring by two closely-related gull species to coastal marshes.

Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987)·2026

Same author

Migration routes of three closely related species lead to different non-breeding regions with contrasting environmental conditions.

Movement ecology·2026

Same author

Habitat selection of three gull species in response to sudden changes in human mobility.

Proceedings. Biological sciences·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 17, 2026

Low-Cost Automated Flight Intercept Trap for the Temporal Sub-Sampling of Flying Insects Attracted to Artificial Light at Night

Low-Cost Automated Flight Intercept Trap for the Temporal Sub-Sampling of Flying Insects Attracted to Artificial Light at Night

Published on: December 29, 2021

Animal niches in the airspace.

Cecilia Nilsson¹, Judy Shamoun-Baranes², Dara A Satterfield³

¹Department of Biology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.

Trends in Ecology & Evolution

|September 19, 2025

Summary

Flying animals like birds, bats, and insects utilize the airspace for critical behaviors. New tracking technologies reveal how environmental factors and interactions shape their aerial habitats and ecological niches.

Keywords:

aerial habitat aeroecology animal flight bats biotic interactions birds flight altitudes insects

More Related Videos

Building an Enhanced Flight Mill for the Study of Tethered Insect Flight

Building an Enhanced Flight Mill for the Study of Tethered Insect Flight

Published on: March 10, 2021

A Simple Flight Mill for the Study of Tethered Flight in Insects

A Simple Flight Mill for the Study of Tethered Flight in Insects

Published on: December 10, 2015

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jan 17, 2026

Low-Cost Automated Flight Intercept Trap for the Temporal Sub-Sampling of Flying Insects Attracted to Artificial Light at Night

Low-Cost Automated Flight Intercept Trap for the Temporal Sub-Sampling of Flying Insects Attracted to Artificial Light at Night

Published on: December 29, 2021

Building an Enhanced Flight Mill for the Study of Tethered Insect Flight

Building an Enhanced Flight Mill for the Study of Tethered Insect Flight

Published on: March 10, 2021

A Simple Flight Mill for the Study of Tethered Flight in Insects

A Simple Flight Mill for the Study of Tethered Flight in Insects

Published on: December 10, 2015

Area of Science:

Ecology
Zoology
Bioacoustics

Background:

The airspace is a vital habitat for numerous flying animal species, including birds, bats, and insects.
Technological advancements in tracking and radar provide unprecedented insights into aerial behaviors and habitat utilization.

Purpose of the Study:

To review environmental conditions and biological interactions influencing animal distribution in the airspace across life cycles.
To establish an ecological framework for understanding aerial habitat niches and realized niches shaped by biotic interactions.

Main Methods:

Literature review of studies on flying animal aerial behavior.
Analysis of data from advanced tracking technologies and radar systems.
Ecological framework development for aerial niche definition.

Main Results:

Identified key environmental factors (e.g., energetics, risk) shaping aerial niches.
Highlighted the role of biotic interactions in defining realized aerial niches.
Demonstrated the utility of new technologies in studying aerial ecology.

Conclusions:

Understanding aerial niches requires integrating environmental and biotic factors.
Technological progress is crucial for advancing the study of flying animal ecology in the airspace.
An ecological framework is proposed to guide future research on aerial habitat use.